Abandoned sailboat becomes a custom food boat

CHRISTMAS COVE, Virgin Islands — Getting a pizza fix while on the water is no longer a problem for boaters out on Christmas Cove in the Virgin Islands. Pizza enthusiasts can call Sasha and Tara Bouis on Channel 6 or via telephone to place their order.

The couple overhauled an abandoned aluminum sailboat into the floating pizzeria, “Pizza Pi.” After designing and installing commercial pizza ovens, refrigerators and other essentials for creating the perfect pizza, the “food truck concept” was launched on the water.

Aboard the 37-foot vessel, Sasha and Tara prepare New York style pizza for their clients.

According to the Pizza Pi blog site, Sasha worked on Wall Street before quitting to become a sailboat captain and Tara quit her job as a special education teacher in Indiana to teach scuba diving on the islands. They opened the business in November 2014 after two years of overhauling the boat’s interior.

In an interview with Gizmag Magazine, the entrepreneurs explained, “We worked on private charter yachts in the Virgin Islands for a number of years and always remarked that a pizza boat could do really well in some of the more secluded coves, especially where there are no on shore dining options,” they said. “We tried to talk a few friends into building one, but no one bit. So, we decided to do it ourselves.”

Tourists and boaters in the area simply call ahead to place their order, then head over to the floating pizzeria where they pick up their pizza pie from a pick up window.